


be still my foolish heart

by xiomarisol



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Bisexual Toni Topaz, Bisexual Veronica Lodge, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Jealousy, canon is skipping whimsically somewhere nearby, heathers episode, i wonder what could happen, to make archie and cheryl jealous, veronica and toni fake date
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-22
Updated: 2020-08-22
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:49:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25696084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xiomarisol/pseuds/xiomarisol
Summary: Veronica slides out of the booth and cocks her head towards the door in the back which leads to the speakeasy. A little voice in the back of Toni’s head reminds her that getting drunk with the Northside princess is probably not the best way for her to deal with this breakup.But when Veronica stands up and offers a hand to her, she takes it, and she allows the warmth between them to lead her away.-or, the veronica and toni fake dating AU that literally nobody but me asked for or wanted.
Relationships: Archie Andrews/Veronica Lodge, Betty Cooper & Veronica Lodge, Cheryl Blossom/Toni Topaz, Veronica Lodge/Toni Topaz
Comments: 17
Kudos: 83





	1. part one: wouldn’t know where to start

Pop’s is neutral ground.

Located right between the North and Southside and home to the best burgers that money can buy, it’s the safest place to be for someone who is trying to avoid conflict. At least that’s what Toni tells herself when she walks through the familiar doors without a Northside redhead to vouch for her.

The place is, thankfully, completely empty. Toni skulks to a booth in the back and lays her head in her arms. Sweet Pea’s couch isn’t the most comfortable place to sleep, and after the night—week—she’s had, she just needs a second to breathe.

Toni’s eyes open to a gentle hand shaking her awake. She looks up to find a familiar brunette peering down at her with furrowed brows.

“Hi, Toni. Sorry to wake you. You just seem like you could use this.”

“Thanks, V.” Toni says, taking the drink out of Veronica’s outstretched hand.

“Can I get you anything else? On the house.”

“No.” Toni answers, but her stomach’s grumbling beats her to it. Heat crawls on her cheeks and she buries her face in her hands again.

Veronica stifles a laugh, “Yeah, I’m gonna get you a burger before that bear in your stomach eats us all.”

“Sorry, I haven’t eaten all day. Sweet Pea sustains himself off Monster energy drinks and peanuts.”

Veronica’s eyes grow sympathetic, and she bites her lip like she’s trying not to say something, before continuing, “I heard about you and Cheryl. I’m really sorry.”

Toni groans, hiding her face in the crook of her elbow again so Veronica doesn’t see the tears that have sprung to her eyes at the mention of the redhead. Still, her words come out shaky when she asks, “So what, does everybody know now?”

“Cheryl posted on Twitter. Hashtag Choni is over. Kevin is really torn up about it.” _Over._ Cheryl said they’re _over._ Toni can’t help the sob that escapes her throat when she thinks about it, but she tries to muffle it with another groan.

Veronica slides into the booth across from her, “From the looks of it you’re really torn up about it, too.”

“I really don’t want to talk about it, and least of all with _you._ ” Toni regrets the words as soon as they leave her mouth, mostly because Veronica is not a good actress and the hurt on her face is badly disguised with a scowl, but also because it’s not true. Toni hasn’t worked with Veronica for long, but it’s been long enough to realize that Veronica Lodge is a loyal friend, even when people didn’t deserve it. “Sorry, V, that was unfair. It’s just still so… new.”

The brunette offers her a gentle smile, “Don’t worry about it. But if you don’t want to talk about it, you’ll at least have to bury your sorrows in something a little stronger than a hot chocolate.”

Veronica slides out of the booth and cocks her head towards the door in the back which leads to the speakeasy. A little voice in the back of Toni’s head reminds her that getting drunk with the Northside princess is probably not the best way for her to deal with this breakup.

But when Veronica stands up and offers a hand to her, she takes it, and she allows the warmth between them to lead her away.

-

Turns out, passing around a bottle of rum with Veronica Lodge isn’t the absolute _worst_ way to spend her first night single. They lean into each other in their seats at the bar, giggling at nothing.

“Are you drunk?” Veronica asks, “Because I think we’ve almost f-finished this bottle.”

Toni laughs, breathy and quiet, “A little. Are you?”

“Yeah. But not too drunk to finish the rest if it’s making you feel better.”

At this, Toni lets out a sigh. In her laughter with Veronica, she had forgotten how much she felt like crying, but now that she remembered, there was no sucking the tears back in. A sniffle turns into a tear which turns into a sob that she tries to hide in the sleeve of her flannel.

“Oh no.” Veronica muses, leaning forward to wrap her arms around Toni’s midsection. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

“Fuck. I’m too drunk for this.” Toni answers, before rethinking it and wrapping her hand around the neck of the bottle, tipping it upwards, “On second thought, if I’m about to talk about Cheryl, maybe I’m not drunk enough.”

A loud laugh that ends with a snort weasels itself out of Veronica’s gut. Of course, Toni has heard Veronica laugh before. She has the ladylike, tinkling laughter that she uses to butter up potential buyers and the soft laugh that she uses around the core four. But this laugh was new.

Veronica covers her mouth with her hand after she snorts, looking up at Toni with wide eyes. Toni just smiles, gently, and offers her the neck of the bottle.

“It’s so-it’s so _fucked_ up. Like, I didn’t even want to break up, you know? I just wanted Cheryl and I to have a healthy relationship and to have our own lives. We’re only seventeen and we _live_ together with _twin babies,_ for God’s sake. It’s not healthy.”

Veronica leans back against the bar, “That _is_ so fucked up.”

“Right! And now I’m going to look like the bad guy. When she-when she _threw me out_ like a nothing, knowing I don’t have anywhere to fucking go, like six months together meant nothing to her.”

“Wait. She threw you out?”

“Have you seen Cheryl mad?”

Veronica laughs, short and petty, “Have _I_ seen Cheryl mad? Have—Toni, Cheryl has been so much nicer and more reasonable since she met you. Sophomore year Cheryl threatened to skin me alive for being late to practice when my dad went to jail.”

Suddenly all the alcohol in the world couldn’t dull the heartbreak Toni felt. She had seen, of course, the progress Cheryl had been making, and now she couldn’t help but wonder if this breakup would throw it all away. Her words wrapped themselves around a sob, “Fuck. What the fuck am I gonna do without her, V?”

“Hey, hey, hey.” Veronica stood up on shaky, drunken legs and wrapped her arms around Toni’s shoulders. Toni leaned her head forward and allowed herself to cry into Veronica’s shoulder, comforted by the knowledge that their recollection of tonight’s events would be hazy at best. “You’ll be just fine. Cheryl’s great. Love her. But she’s not _Rihanna._ ”

The laugh that bubbles up from Toni’s throat is pitiful, but at least it’s not a sob.

“There she is.” Veronica pulls away from Toni, but keeps a hand on her shoulder, “You really will be fine, you know. You have Sweet Pea and Fangs and Jughead and _me._ Granted, things at home aren’t _ideal_ right now, or I’d bring you home with me, but I’m sure my mother will get over it if you ever need to crash. And you always have access to La Bonne Nuit, if you need someplace to stay, and the Pop’s kitchen is free to you always and—”

“Thanks, V. You’re not so bad.”

Veronica scoffs, “Not so bad? I can’t say that’s the highest praise I’ve ever gotten, but with the week I’ve been having, I’ll take it.”

“The week you’ve been having?” Toni frowns, “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, no. No, no. This is about you and your devastating breakup. Besides, my problems are petty compared to what’s going on with you.”

“Please, V?” Toni blinks up at her through her lashes, “It’ll be a nice distraction.”

“That’s— _pinches ojos—_ that’s not fair.” Veronica reaches behind Toni to where their bottle had sat forgotten on the bar. “Fine. It’s just—it’s stupid but I always thought me and Archie were meant to be. Like… after all that we’ve been through together we’d be able to last. But he’s forgotten me overnight. And Betty spends all her time with Jughead, and I spend all my time here and I’m just feeling—”

“Lonely.”

“Yeah.” Veronica tips the bottle back and takes another swig. “Shit sucks.”

“I thought Archie was dating Josie.” Toni suddenly announced, her filter reduced by her high blood alcohol content, but regretted it the second she saw Veronica’s crestfallen face.

“That makes a lot of sense. The auditions for the musical… at callbacks… they were all cozy. I—I should’ve known.”

Toni reaches forward, placing a gentle hand on Veronica’s shoulder. “Hey, it’s okay, you’re prettier than her.”

Veronica let out a laugh which later turned into a drunken sob, “You’re such a _liar_ Toni Topaz, she’s gorgeous. If I was Archie, I’d date her too.”

“Careful, Lodge, any more of that and I’ll start thinking you play for my team.”

“I do.” Veronica lays her head on the bar, looking to check out of this conversation, but Toni stops her.

“Uh-uh, what? You don’t get to say that and go to sleep.”

“I’m bisexual.”

“Since _when?_ ”

“Since birth?” Veronica closes her eyes and hums.

“Do the others know?”

“I haven’t told them,” The girl answers, eyes still shut, “I thought everyone knew, when I first got here and after I kissed Betty—”

“You did _what_?”

“Yeah, at tryouts. It’s a long story. And stop interrupting me while I’m coming out to you. Very rude.”

Toni chuckles, “Sorry, sorry. Do continue.”

Veronica’s eyes blink open slowly, “I kissed her in front of the whole cheerleading team. I did it partly because I didn’t want to _have_ to come out. Also, partly because, well, Betty’s really pretty and when we first met I thought I felt a _vibe._ But everybody just acted like that’s a normal thing straight girls do here, kiss female practical strangers just for shock value. And then Chuck asked me out, and then Archie and… well, I didn’t see the point.”

“Well, I’m honored to be the first to be told.” Toni leans back against the bar with a smug smile, “I feel like a bisexual messiah. Like I brought you to the sapphic light.”

Veronica rolls her eyes, “Yeah, right. I just told you I kissed Betty _before_ you got here.”

“Let me have my moment.”

“Sure, Riverdale’s very own Kristen Stewart.”

“Damn right.”

Veronica sits up suddenly, “I have an idea.”

Toni startles, thinking she’s going to fall over and reaches out to stabilize her, “Shit, Veronica, what the hell?”

“I have an idea.”

Toni nods warily and tries not to think about how Veronica’s wide smile and innocent excitement is kind of _really cute._ “Okay. What is it?”

“We should fake date.”

“Okay, you’ve definitely had _way_ too much to drink.”

“I’m serious!” Veronica pouts, “And yes, I have, but I don’t think that determines the validity of my request.”

“ _Why_ would we fake date?”

“Just—just think with me for a second. If we fake date, Cheryl is going to get _sooooo_ jealous. Her possessive ass won’t last a day seeing you with me and she’ll realize what a grave mistake she’s made and come crawling back.”

That _does_ make sense, Toni thinks. “No way. Plus, what would you get out of this?”

“Help coming out? And maybe if Archie sees me with you he’ll realize that what he and Josie have is nothing compared to what we have. I love Josie, but Archie and I are endgame. I can’t give up this easily.”

“I don’t know, V.” Toni rubs her temple with her thumb, “Isn’t Cheryl your friend? This seems a little shady.”

“Of course, she is. And she’ll appreciate me even more once our plan works and she is back in your Serpent arms.”

“Snakes don’t have arms.”

Veronica laughs, that loud, boisterous laugh that seemed to be reserved only for her drunken nights, “You do, though. And you and Cheryl are worth fighting for, even if you need to play a little dirty.”

Bringing her bottom lip between her teeth, Toni thinks about Veronica’s proposal. The plan is insane, even in her drunken stupor, Toni knows this. But if it works? It might be worth it.

“I’m in.” Toni answers, and tries not to get distracted by the way Veronica’s face lights up at the sound of it, “But we need a plan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi ya'll! this fic has been dancing around in the back of my mind for a little bit, so here is the first chapter. i'm planning for there to be three or four parts, but we'll see where it takes us! 
> 
> if anyone read this or enjoyed, leave a comment <3


	2. part two: sweet music

Toni has had her fair share of hangovers, but the lack of food and sleep deprivation was making this one particularly gnarly. La Bonne Nuit’s basement, at least, is almost fully dark this early in the morning, but every little movement she hears upstairs feels like a jab to her temple.

She groans, picking herself up from where she was asleep on the floor, and finds a scribbled-on receipt next to her head. There’s a message written on it in large, loopy handwriting, the kind that shows you went to a private elementary school where cursive is still taught.

_‘Had to go meet Daddy at the house for breakfast. Feel free to tell Pop Tate to fix you up something, on us. Meet me here tonight at 5 to debrief. —V._

_P.S. Check your phone. Sweet Pea and Fangs have been texting you all morning.’_

Fuck. She was supposed to meet them at eleven today to see if she could pick up some of her old shifts at the Wyrm. And it’s… one pm. Great. She opens Fangs’ messages first, because he’s nicer and more forgiving than Sweet Pea.

 **Fangs** : wya toni?

 **Fangs** : we’re at my trailer, mami made breakfast, come thru!

 **Fangs** : hope ur alive <3 text sweets back he’s losing it

Toni opens Sweet Pea’s messages thinking the worst. Sweet Pea can be temperamental and a bit of a knucklehead, so after what happened with the Poisons, Toni does her best to stay on his good side.

 **Sweet Pea:** u otw?

 **Sweet Pea:** bitch u better be RUNNING

 **Sweet Pea:** if ur back with Cheryl i will actually kill u bc i had to basically eat boss’ ass to get him to hire u again

 **Sweet Pea:** on second thought you better be dead already

Instead of replying to either of them individually, she opens a group chat.

 **Toni:** hi ya’ll! i’m really really sorry about this morning. i got trashed with veronica at the speakeasy yesterday and just woke up. killer hangover. wanna meet for lunch?

-

When Toni arrives at Sandra’s, a hole in the wall soul-food joint on the Southside, Sweet Pea and Fangs are already waiting for her in front of a huge platter of mac n’ cheese, collard greens, and fried chicken that makes her stomach churn.

“Hey, guys.”

The boys look up at her and immediately burst into laughter. Sweet Pea speaks up first, “Dude, you look like you got run over.”

“Ha, ha, very funny. You try being 120 pounds and bodying half a bottle of rum and then we’ll talk.”

“I can’t believe you got trashed with Veronica Lodge,” Fangs says as Toni scoots into the booth beside him, “How the hell did that happen?”

Sweet Pea speaks around a mouthful of chicken, “Yeah, since when are you two friends?”

“Ew, Sweets. Close your mouth.” Sweet Pea laughs and opens his mouth up wider, giving Toni and Fangs a front row seat to all the half-chewed food in his mouth. Toni throws a crumpled-up napkin at him before replying, “And I don’t know, Veronica’s cool. She saw me at Pop’s looking all depressed, so we went downstairs to drink. One thing lead to another and now I have the worst hangover of my entire life.”

“Free booze from the rich Northsiders.” Sweet Pea reaches out to Fangs for a high five as the other boy replies with a “Score!”

“Shut up.” Toni rolls her eyes, “Once I’m working at the Wyrm again, we’ll have all the free booze we can handle between that and my shifts at the speakeasy.”

“Hold up, you’re still gonna work there?”

“Yeah, Toni, isn’t that Cheryl’s rum business? She’s gonna kick your ass out.”

Truth be told, Toni hadn’t even considered that to be a possibility. It’s not fair. Toni has built a life for herself at Riverdale High, on the Northside, at the speakeasy, and it could all be taken away if Cheryl decides to be petty. But… Toni trusts Cheryl, still, to understand how much she needs that job. “Veronica offered me that bouncer job and the speakeasy doesn’t belong to her. Cheryl has no grounds to kick me out of it.”

Fangs laughs, “Are we talking about the same Cheryl Blossom here? ‘I need no reasons’ Cheryl Blossom? ‘Cause if I were you I’d start looking for another job, nena.”

Because Toni doesn’t know how to explain the odd predicament she’s got herself into with Veronica, and because thinking about Cheryl reverting back to her HBIC ways makes her inescapably sad, she doesn’t reply. There’s no use arguing with people who don’t know Cheryl the way she does. They haven’t seen her cry, haven’t loved her kind heart, haven’t met her mother… they can’t understand her. Nobody really can, except maybe Veronica and Josie, which makes this whole bizarre plan even more confusing.

So, Toni tells herself not to worry about it. Because she knows Cheryl the best. And she’s going to get her back.

-

“Antoinette Topaz, you’re early.” Veronica says when she walks up to Toni’s table inside Pop’s. The girl is wearing an ensemble that is much more suited for a five-star restaurant than a diner and it’s kind of unfair that she looks so put together when Toni has just been trying to look alive all day.

“Yeah, well, it’s kind of hard to find somewhere to be when you’re homeless.” It’s a curt reply, and a little rude, but Toni’s day has been so shitty that she can’t bring herself to care.

After lunch with the boys, she knocked on doors all over Sunnyside to see if someone had a spare room. No dice. Sweet Pea and Fangs’ families were hardly in the position to take on another mouth to feed, and most people in the park barely had room for their own, so unless she wanted to beg her uncle to let her crash, she was on her own. Again. And yeah, maybe it’s not Veronica’s fault, but Toni can guarantee that she’s never had to worry about where dinner is coming from or where she’s going to spend the night.

Veronica, to her credit, at least has the decency to look a little guilty. “I’m sorry, Toni. I wish I could do more to help, but my father… well, I’m sure Cheryl has given you the rundown.”

This time it’s Toni’s turn to feel guilty. Cheryl had told her all about Hiram Lodge, about how he barged into the speakeasy and broke all of their bottles, about his manipulation and scheming and A+ parenting. Veronica may have always had a place to stay, but the Pembrooke doesn’t seem like much of a home either.

“It’s okay. It’s not your fault, it’s just been a long day.”

“Seconded.” Veronica says, sighing loudly. She scoots into the booth across from Toni and rests her cheek on the palm of her hand. “I think this calls for a burger, you in?”

Toni nods, knowing she’s in no position to deny a free meal, and plays with the salt shaker as Veronica waves Pop order and places their orders.

“So,” Veronica starts, eyes narrow, “How do you want to do this?”

Straight to the point. Toni cocks an eyebrow at her, “What do you mean?”

“You know, our arrangement. Obviously we need a mourning period, you and Cheryl just broke up and I don’t need everyone treating me like a monster again. I also wouldn’t do that to her. But not too long, if you let the breakup go cold it won’t work, plus I want to catch Archie and Josie in the early stages before I lose him forever.”

Toni stares blankly back at her, “You’re insane.”

“I’m strategic.”

“Insane.” Toni teases just as Pop Tate comes by with their trays. His eyebrows are raised in curiosity as he reaches their table, but he says nothing and instead places the trays down with a smile. The girls nod their thanks at him, and Toni turns back to Veronica, “To be honest, V, I’m getting cold feet.”

Veronica’s resulting pout makes Toni better understand why Archie used to act like she had him on a leash. “I get it, Toni, I don’t want to pressure you. You can think about it for a bit.”

“Yeah,” Toni swirls her straw in her milkshake, “I just don’t want to hurt her.”

“Me neither.” Eyes downcast, Veronica picks at the skin around her nails. “Maybe you’re right. It could be a bad idea. I just need a win right now.”

“Is everything okay?”.

“Everything’s fine.” The corner of the girl’s mouth ticks upward in a sad smile. “Daddy’s trying to destroy my life, as per usual, and my best friend won’t answer any of my calls.”

“Betty?”

“Yeah,” Veronica sighs, “She’s always so busy with Jughead’s… murder stuff. And I get it, they have a bond that can never be broken or whatever, but I just wish she would set aside a little time for me. That’s all. Since Archie and I broke up, I see all of them even less. It’s just me and the speakeasy.”

“You’re lonely.” Toni thinks back to those few months when she felt abandoned by the Serpents she used to call family, and she kind of gets it.

“I guess you could say that.”

Because Toni gets it, the need to feel like you have some control over your current situation, and because she also feels like it’s been ripped away from her, she blurts out, “Let’s do it.”

Veronica looks up from her plate, confused, “What?”

“Our thing. Let’s do it.”

Veronica responds with one of her mega-watt smiles and says, “Really?”

“What do we have to lose, right?” Toni chuckles dryly, “We’ve already been dumped.”

“True that.” Veronica takes a sip from her milkshake, then looks up at Toni. “So, how about that plan?”

-

As it turns out, creating a fake relationship is almost as hard as getting into a real relationship, especially when you’re doing it with Veronica Lodge.

“V, I really don’t think the place where we debut our relationship is going to make or break our story.”

“I just think that the student lounge would get the word out the fastest. And it beats having to tell our respective friend groups separately.”

“This is Riverdale. Word’s getting out no matter what.” Toni twirls the end of her hair on her finger, suddenly wishing she had ordered more fries, because this little meeting was taking much longer than she’d anticipated. “Matter of fact, we should just tell Kevin. Boom. Secret’s out.”

Veronica glares back at Toni for a second before her eyes widen and she erupts into a smile again, “Antoinette Topaz, you’re a genius.”

 _This girl might actually have a screw loose,_ Toni thinks, before gesturing for her to continue.

“Are you still trying out for the musical?”

“Cheryl’s musical? Do you want me to die?”

“A little dramatic, don’t you think? And it’s Kevin’s musical… and he’s still looking for a choreographer and someone to fill the role of Betty Finn.”

“Me? You want me to choreograph the musical?”

“You seem to forget that I was there for your River Vixens tryout, Toni. I know you’ve got moves.” Veronica’s lips curl into a sly and slightly predatory smile, the kind that makes Toni feel like she’s being led right into a trap. “Plus, this would give us an excuse to spend more time together. We’ll be around Cheryl and Archie all the time during rehearsals, thus speeding up the process of getting those redheads so jealous they can’t help but run back to us. Not to mention Kevin will be directing, which means we’ll be fed right into the gossip mill.”

 _Yep, the screw is definitely loose. It’s probably completely fallen out by now,_ Toni thinks, staring back at Veronica with narrowed eyes.

“What?” Veronica asks, “Did my glorious plan render you speechless due to its sheer genius?”

“More like due to your sheer crazy.” Toni answers, but the words come out lacking all the bite when she notices how hopeful and proud of herself Veronica looks.

The girl responds with a loud laugh and says, “Is that a yes?”

Before she can talk herself out of making a better decision, Toni answers, “Sure. Let’s do it.”

Veronica’s face erupts into the widest smile she’s shown all day and she leans forward over the table to wrap her arms around Toni’s shoulders, “Yes! I’m going to be the best fake-girlfriend you’ve ever had, Toni Topaz.”

Despite being slightly taken aback, Toni lets out a fond laugh and returns the hug, trying not to think about how she could get really used to making her smile like that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> part two is finally here, folks! 
> 
> sorry for the wait, i'm really trying to get their characters just right 'cause this is a complicated dynamic (so much free rein though since their interactions have been minimal). let me know what you think about this chapter and anything you would like to see in the future! 
> 
> (there should be two or three more parts... i'm really trying to not let it get too long)


End file.
